Maybe NOW the Bethlehem police will start patrolling the developments a bit more. Or do we need to wait until someone is killed? We’ve already had a homeowner terrorized and now some deranged youth torched someone else’s house (apparently a classmate’s?). It’s time for a curfew and STRICT enforcement of town ordinances. It’s time for the police to step up and make their presence felt in these communities. Maybe the Haswell Farms Homeowners Association needs to think about hiring it’s own security team to patrol as well.

I cannot wait until these deliquents go back to school so we can all breathe a little easier.

Although I am not associated with the Bethlehem Police Department I think I am accurate in saying that your tax dollar is getting the same size police force that was in existence before the development of Haswell Farms, Walmart, Fischer Blvd., The Mansions, etc., etc. It is also important to realize that this department covers a huge area that extends to the Hudson River, south on route 144 and 9W, out towards Clarksville and North Bethlehem. Although I understand your desire to have the Haswell Farms area patrolled on a regular basis, it probably means more tax dollars to increase the staff. Before Bethelehem opened their arms to Walmart (with the lame justification that it would create jobs) the leaders should have said that Walmart would pay for the extra staff it takes to constantly respond to calls at that plaza. Please, before someone jumps in with the taxes that Walmart pays should cover this, check the data over the years on what Crossgates has cost Guilderland.

Just over a week ago we had more property damage in Glenmont. Paint and eggs were strewn all over roofs and asphalt. The police, once again, did not even want to come and take reports from the homeowners – but they finally did. No police vehicles have been seen patrolling since. They do not take anything that these kids do seriously. Maybe it is time to get rid of our police force and use the county sheriffs and state police.
How can this town continue to allow housing development when they are not able to keep current residents and their property safe?

I couldn’t agree more with #3. as a resident in the development i can personally attest to the teenagers in this development have been out of control for too long….last year we had numerous electrical boxes spray painted, over 40 mail boxes smashed and every winter they are beaming cars with sownballs. during the summer they are hanging out at all hours of the night — well past midnight in packs of 10 -15.. they party on deadmans hill (under the power lines) they have bon fires on the farm next to Haswell farms, which is private property…. and this is just the tip of the iceberg….

it’s time for parents to become responsible for the actions of their children and for the police to begin cracking down!

bb…. who are you to call us deliquents? thats such an ignorant thing to say. your labeling teenagers of bethlehem as savage people.. which isnt the case. so a couple of kids go and decide to do stupid things over the summer…stuff happens. the fire was terrible and im not saying it wasnt a big deal. but thats only a couple of kids. its not like every house in a neiborhood can have a squad car stiing outside. In fact, adults cause more trouble in bethlehem then the kids. Do you not remember the drug bust of an ADULTS basement? so maybe you should get your facts straight before going and trying to lay a bad reputation on the youth. take a look in the mirror.

yup, cause all teenagers that live in BETHLEHEM are “delinquents”. Clearly this was a big deal and something was wrong with VanZandt but to peg all the youth that live here as “delinquents” is a little ridiculous. The other incident you referred to was just an innocent game of ding dong ditch. Yes, its annoying for grumpy old adults that have no sense of humor and clearly don’t remember being teenagers, but doesn’t cause anybody any real harm…until the homeowner attacks a 14 year old, drags him into the house and binds him with duct tape. Any security teams in Haswell would be a waste of money. If individuals don’t feel safe living in Haswell i don’t think they would feel safe living anywhere. And just a heads up, the Bethlehem police do constantly stop teenagers for doing nothing more than existing all the time. There’s nothing to do in this town, you can’t really blame us for being around town at night. Welcome to the suburbs.

Dear Bethlehem Teenager, I’m soooo sorry there is nothing to do in this town! Maybe you should stay home and read a book. Or play a board game with your Mom or Dad or sibling, or a neighbors child who is an only child. What do you think kids did before there was cable tv? We didn’t run amuck in our neighborhoods, that was when neighbors gave a hoot and would hold you, the child, accountable for your actions. And then, you had to go home and deal with the wrath of your parent’s. That was sometimes worse than the scolding you got from your neighbor.
As a homeowner, I would protect my family in whatever way I could, I hope that you, Bethlehem Teenager gets a wake up call someday in your life and you can appreciate the horrific fear and adrenaline that was pulsing through this adult’s veins when they tackled this other person.
The children in Delmar are so entitled, it makes me sick. What they are entitled to is some parenting and limits. Please, Delmar parents, WAKE UP!

CC – As I recall, ding-dong-ditch doesn’t include banging on windows and running around the house. In fact, it’s it’s actually the complete opposite. And there was no duct tape involved, so stop making things up.
There’s plenty to do in town. Go to Tastee Freeze and have a hot dog and a shake…go to My Place and have some wings…go to Perfect Blend and have a coffee…go to the town park and swim in the pool, play tennis, or chill under a tree and read “Twilight.” Also, who says you have to stay in Bethlehem? Go to the mall and catch a movie or buy some Silly Bandz. Go to the Empire State Plaza and spend a day in the museum. And don’t give me “I don’t have a license” as an excuse. I’m sure your parents or your friends parents would be more than willing to drive you someplace, knowing you’re not out wreaking havoc on the town.
Stop whining and trying to defend your immaturity. It makes you look ridiculous.

hang on there friendly bethlehem teen–what has been described in these comments is not just “teenage behavior”–it’s destructive behavior. While “delinquent” may be a tad strong, the fact still remains that kids are apparently frequently roaming bethlehem developments at night being disruptive and destructive.
Do an attitude check there kiddo and lose the old “there’s nothing to do” excuse…the majority of teems in the town seem to be able to find constructive things to do and are not out harrassing their neighbors.

I agree most teenagers are good kids, but like the old saying goes a few rotten apples always spoil the basket. the real issue is that the bad ones are doing things that are more and more “delinquent orientated” as for the comment about not enough to do I couldn’t agree more the community should offer more recreational services to teens but that still is no excuse for the level of behavior we’re seeing.

Unfortunately when anything happens anywhere, some people say racist comments lumping the incident to a certain race, religion, age, class etc. In reality it’s not true…many adults have had their share of incidents in Delmar and obviously all of us writing are not bad people same for the teens and us parents. I try not to forget being a teen myself, I wasn’t perfect (my mom was though) I did not start fires but just saying let’s give these teens in Delmar some credit, check out our school scores and all the teens that work in Delmar stores, pool etc., my kids have done stupid things maybe not to others (I hope) but sometimes it happens and I can only tell them so much and pray they do right….Delmar doesn’t have bad teens sometimes they just do bad things I am not saying it’s right but mistakes happen unfortunately this fire is a major thing and I can only wonder what this boy had gone through in his life to let his mind convince him to do this horrific crime…obviously something….let’s pray he gets the proper mental treatment to become a better adult and if it stems from the parents he didn’t choose them and their parenting skills…I am not justifying his behavior at all or teens of Delmar but let’s not be negative about ALL teens and parents none of us are perfect we can only try and do our best and learn from our mistakes and pray that nobody gets hurt while we all work, play and raise our families in this beautiful Delmar area that like all things in life, is not as flawless as some may wish to believe.

I’ve never spent any time in this neighborhood so don’t know what its “culture” is like. It seems to me though that there tends to be less vandalism in neighborhoods where adults are often outside, hanging out on their porches or exercising or working or whatever. When almost everyone spends most of their time inside their houses, they don’t get to know each other and look out for each other. More adults spending time outside may or may not have prevented specific incidents like this probable arson, but I get the impression that casual vandalism is a pretty constant problem in some areas, and I suspect that some neighborhood cultural changes could reduce it.

Listen up, I’m a teenager from Bethlehem. Obviously, this 17 year old is a bit confused or thinks he needs to prove something, however, it doesn’t mean that the town needs to up its supervision. The police honestly stop all of us teens every time we are out, even for just walking. They’re doing their jobs, so no need to worry. Asking for a separate patrol seems a bit ridiculous too. As for the “deliquents go back to school so we can all breathe a little easier” comment, since this VanZandt teen is just 17, seems to me that he either just graduated high school or is just about to start his senior year. Us “deliguents” who have graduated and gone to college don’t deserve that kind of insult. Yes, I’m probably one of those kids in a pack of 10-15, but we don’t do any harm. We’re respectful if you respect us, and understand where we’re coming from. Sorry if our nightlife starts when your day ends. It’s called a generation gap, a body clock, a difference. You “adults” who are so much wiser and know what we are going through should understand at least that much..

I’m a graduated senior of BCHS and sorry to burst your bubbles adults but kids will be kids. Lets not lie to ourselves and think that the “adults” of today weren’t doing the same things we are doing now when they were kids. Our community is a little up tight and needs to take everything with a grain of salt. Yes, burning someone’s house down is an awful thing to do, but to classify all teens as a bunch of hooligans up to no good is ludicrous. Also, the parents of this community need to be a little more aware of what their kids are doing. Most parents in this area have no clue where their kids are at night and they are constantly fed the same series of lines.”I’m going to so and so’s house.” So parents get your heads out of the sand and actually figure out what’s going on your childs life.

#19 – I work all day. You don’t. Next time I see you out with your 10-15 friends, you better be doing something like mowing my lawn or contributing something positive to your neighborhood. Your immaturity and sense of entitlement is a disgrace to your parents.

Why are bethlehem parents and bethlehem police messed up. im not just saying that ive had personal experiences with both and have been dissapointed, the cops look for any sort of action such as people i know being pulled over at 10 at night for riding on the street. ive also had experiences with albany cops and they seem to have their minds straight and remember what its like to be a teenager….STOP

Between all of the mailbox smushing, vandilization, and kids out until 1 in the morning the police need to start doing something. We should start a community look out. We could station next to the community garden! I started that by the way. We can once again create a beautiful town. Kids, do uncle martin a favor and go in early at night.

I find this all absolutely ridiculous. To those of you who are calling for curfews, private security patrols, and “cracking down,” I say this: that’s a bit harsh. To lump all of us in with one person who does something terrible is, to be honest, insulting. Please understand that I’m not trying to downplay what he did. I live very close to the family and I feel horrible about what happened. But that doesn’t mean that everyone like Benjamin Van Zandt should be punished because of his actions.

After the incident a few years back with the Porco murders, was there a cry to have a curfew for college students and adults? No. It was accepted as a terrible thing that happened as the result of one person, not many, and the punishment was handed out to that one person, not many. Why, then, does that not hold true here?

Now, to be fair, I can understand that, as a parent or a homeowner, you would want to feel that your families are safe. However, whether you realize it or not, by calling for curfews and things of that nature you are seeking to put your own safety and freedom ahead of that of others.

To ‘countrygirl,’ I say that Friendly Bethlehem Teen does make a fair point. There isn’t a whole lot to do in Bethlehem. Yes, you could go to Perfect Blend or the mall, but that requires a way to get there and it requires money. Hanging out with your friends doesn’t necessarily require either of those. Am I condoning destructive behavior like this? Of course not. I am, however, condoning a teenager’s right to hang out outside with their friends and walk around, whether it be in a neighborhood or not. If you don’t want your children to do that, then that is entirely your decision, and entirely within your rights. It is not within your rights, however, to place such limitations on other children. Furthermore, don’t tell me that you never hung out with friends when you were 17, that you never stayed outside late into the night just walking, talking, and laughing, especially in the summer.

As a teenager, I am actually offended that I would even have to point out these things to adults who, to be perfectly honest, should be able to realize them for themselves.

Please don’t get me wrong. I welcome your right to register an opinion and I am in no way trying to prevent or dissuade you from doing so. All I seek is to try to use that same right to share my opinion and to try to point out what I see as some problems in the arguments for such measures as curfews and private security patrols. As such, I invite anyone who might have a problem with my opinion to do as I have done and point it out to me.

Lastly (before I ramble any further), to the Lilley family: I would like to extend my deepest condolences and sympathies. I cannot imagine what you must be going through after a terrible tragedy such as this.

another bethlehem teen: your points are, for the most part, entirely valid. my point was simply that many of the antics going on out there depart from “typical” teen behavior (as described by other teen commenters) when it becomes destructive or disruptive in any way. Of course all teens shouldn’t blamed for the actions of a minority but teens also shouldn’t use that old chestnut “there’s nothing to do” as any kind of excuse. I believe I also pointed out that, even if there is “nothing to do”, the majority of teens in bethlehem do not engage in these behaviors and most kids certainly should not be thrown into the “delinquent” category, nor should they be told to get off the streets at 9PM. However, and its a big however, there have apparently been problems out there all summer, and therefore parents, particularly, and neighbors and the PD do need to be vigilant.

The combined crime of L’arsony maybe seen in a better light in the sense that it is demonstrating an increase in jobs. It allows the firefighters to help the police officers to put out arsons. Also it allows the police officers to help the firefighters catch the l’arsonists. We should punish him with castration and codorize the wound. This would simulate what he has done to society.

I understand kids will be kids but be “kids” on your own property. I don’t care what you do in your free time, just don’t bother people that don’t want to be bothered.
To you it’s an “innocent” game of ding-dong-ditch. To the person inside, it’s dark shadowy figures creeping up to their house late at night.
I’m not calling for more police or a curfew. Just have some respect for others. Anyone who thinks ding-dong-ditch is a fun time either has intelligence issues or maturity issues. Thats like 5 year old level humor not 16 year old. I am not far removed from being a teen and never played ding-dong-ditch simply because there is nothing fun about it. If you think thats a good time and you are older than 9, you need to seriously examine yourself.